Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Risk Factors, Clinico-Pathologic Characteristics And Outcomes In Young Kenyan Female Patients With Breast Cancer In Akuh-N, Gilford Mutwiri Mwikamba

Theses & Dissertations

Background: Breast cancer in the young refers to a diagnosis of breast cancer in a female under the age of forty years. This is considered a distinct disease with different risk factors, biology, and prognosis. Young age at breast cancer diagnosis is reportedly more common among African-Americans. The highest proportion of breast cancer in the young has been reported in Africa. Early detection of breast cancer in Africa is hampered by lack of access to health care services, appropriate screening tools, and high cost of magnetic resonance imaging for the high risk groups. Despite a worse prognosis, management of breast …

Effect Of Laryngeal Mask Airway Manometry On Post-Operative Sore Throat In Spontaneously Breathing Adult Patients Presenting For Surgery At Aga Khan University Hospital, Nairobi, David Njoroge Waruingi

Theses & Dissertations

Background: Laryngeal mask airways (LMAs) are widely used in anaesthesia and are considered to be generally safe. Postoperative sore throat (POST) is a frequent complication following LMA use and can be very distressing to patients. The use of an LMA cuff pressure of between 30 and 32cm of H20 in alleviating postoperative sore throat has not been investigated.

Primary objective: To compare the occurrence of POST between the intervention group in which LMA cuff pressures will be adjusted to 30-32cm of H20 and the control group in which only monitoring of LMA cuff pressures will be done.

Secondary Objectives: To …

Effect Of Additional Lumbosacral Corset On The Outcome Of Patients With Non-Specific Acute Low Back Pain At The Aga Khan University Hospital, Nairobi, Stanley Aruyaru Mwenda

Theses & Dissertations

Introduction: Low back pain (LBP) is a common problem world over affecting 60-90% of the population in their lifetime. It is a leading reason for hospital admission, healthcare spending, workplace absenteeism and years lived with disability.

Up to 90% of patients suffering from low back pain do not have a serious pathology warranting imaging or further intervention besides symptom relief. These are categorized as having non- specific low back pain. This has a good prognosis running a short course of 3 to 6 weeks.

The management of non-specific acute LBP entails analgesia and non-pharmacologic interventions (back school and physical therapy). …

The Association Between Asymptomatic And Mild Neurocognitive Impairment And Adherence To Antiretroviral Therapy Amongst People Living With Hiv, Violet Maloba Awori

Theses & Dissertations

Background: HIV disease is associated with neurocognitive impairment which is one of the neurological complications of the viral infection. The spectrum of HIV Associated neurocognitive impairment has significantly changed since the advent of ART. The inclusion of the asymptomatic but cognitively impaired population of patients has changed the dynamics of this population, and requires further research to identify the impact it has on the progression of the disease as well as on any other aspects. Poor adherence to ART is one of the main causes of treatment failure and studies done previously point towards the milder forms of Neurocognitive Impairment …

Comparison Of Weight Adjusted Dose Versus Fixed Dose Ondansetron In Preventing Shivering Following Spinal Anesthesia For Cesarean Deliveries, Moses Kimuri Gicheru

Theses & Dissertations

Background: Spinal anesthesia is an effective regional anesthesia technique, which is preferred in almost 86% of cesarean sections in the United States and United Kingdom. Eighty percent of cesarean sections done at the Aga Khan University hospital are under spinal anesthesia. Shivering is a common complication of spinal anesthesia, it occurs in 40%-64% of patients after neuraxial anesthesia. Shivering may cause maternal and fetal hypoxemia, maternal discomfort and a problem to the anesthesiologists when it comes to monitoring the patient during cesarean sections.

Ondansetron a 5-HT3 receptor antagonist is effective in treatment and prevention of post spinal anesthesia shivering. In …

Factors That Influence Advance Directives Completion Amongst Terminally Ill Patients At Akuhn, Stephen Omondi Otieno

Theses & Dissertations

Background: An advance directive is a written or verbal document that legally stipulates a person’s health care preference while they are competent to make decisions for themselves, and which is then used to guide decisions on life-sustaining treatment in the event that they become incapacitated. Advance directives can take one of four forms: a living will, a limitation of care document, a do-not-resuscitate order, and an appointment of a surrogate by durable power of attorney. The completion rate of advance directives varies from region to region, and it is influenced by different patient, caregiver, legal, institutional, cultural, and religious factors. …

Effect Of Low-Dose Ketamine Versus Fentanyl On Attenuating The Haemodynamic Response To Laryngoscopy And Endotracheal Intubation In Patients Undergoing General Anaesthesia At The Aga Khan University Hospital, Nairobi, Angela Ongewe

Theses & Dissertations

Background: The use of drugs to attenuate the haemodynamic response to laryngoscopy and endotracheal intubation is the standard of care during elective surgery. Current evidence is conflicting concerning the best agent and optimal dose for this purpose. In the majority of cases, Fentanyl is widely utilized to attenuate haemodynamic responses. Ketamine, an established available drug, has been scarcely studied in this regard at low doses and against varying doses of other common agents.

Objective: The primary objective was to compare the overall occurrence of hypertension and tachycardia immediately pre-intubation (post-induction) until 10 minutes post intubation between the study group receiving …

Residents’ Perception On The Need For Clinical Leadership Training At The Aga Khan University, Nairobi, Lance Mayabi

Theses & Dissertations

Background:The healthcare environment is becoming increasingly complex with physicians undertaking more leadership roles. The majority of physicians are not prepared to take up these roles, despite evolving evidence that good clinical leadership yields better clinical outcomes for both patients and healthcare organizations. Further, few residency programs explicitly embed leadership training for their students despite their positions at the forefront of healthcare delivery. This deficit ultimately leaves a multilevel healthcare “leadership” gap in a sector that depends heavily on the education process to improve clinical outcomes.

A pre-study survey of residency graduates at the Aga Khan University, Nairobi (AKU,N) undertaken …

Prevalence Of Bladder Dysfunction In Children With Primary Nocturnal Enuresis Presenting To The Hospital, Nikita Pravin Jethwa

Theses & Dissertations

Introduction: Bladder dysfunction is thought to be a common cause of nocturnal enuresis. It can either be overactive, underactive or dysfunctional. Currently, there is a paucity of data on what proportions of children with nocturnal enuresis have bladder dysfunction. Studies have shown the prevalence of bladder dysfunction to be as high as 77-94.5% (28), and children with bladder dysfunction have poor response to treatment. There are currently no protocols for investigating and managing children with nocturnal enuresis. The decision for bladder ultrasound is usually made by the primary physician, and at times after the child has been on treatment for …

Maternal Inflammatory Markers In The Diagnosis Of Chorioamnionitis And Prediction Of Neonatal Sepsis In Preterm Pre-Labour Rupture Of Membranes: A Systematic Review, Angela Koech Etyang

Theses & Dissertations

Background: There is no consensus on the potential role of inflammatory markers in identifying chorioamnionitis in women with Preterm Pre-labour Rupture of Membranes (PPROM) or in predicting Early Onset Neonatal Sepsis (EONS) in their neonates.

Objectives: To perform a quantitative review on the accuracy of maternal C reactive protein (CRP), Procalcitonin (PCT) and Interleukin 6 (IL6) in the diagnosis of Histological Chorioamnionitis and/or Funisitis (HCA/Funisitis) and their role in the prediction of EONS in PPROM.

Methods: MEDLINE, EMBASE and The Cochrane Library databases were searched from inception to October 2015, for studies where these markers were assessed against a reference …

Outcomes In Patients With Acute Coronary Syndromes At The Aga Khan University Hospital, Nairobi, Mohamed Hasham Varwani

Theses & Dissertations

Background: As the prevalence of cardiovascular diseases in Sub-Saharan Africa rises, coronary artery disease, with its acute presentations, is being increasingly recognized in Kenyans and treated at tertiary level hospitals. It is just over a decade since the introduction and wide availability of modern cardiology services, including interventional cardiology in Kenya.

Following an acute coronary syndrome (ACS), patients remain at high risk of death and other adverse events such as heart failure, recurrent myocardial infarction, stroke, and bleeding. Local and regional data on long-term outcomes following ACS are lacking. These data are important to clinicians for prognostication and to health …

Prevalence Of Hepatic Steatosis As Diagnosed On Unenhanced Abdominal Ct, Naushad H. Karim Sokwalla

Theses & Dissertations

Background: Hepatic steatosis is the accumulation of triglycerides within hepatocytes. It may be broadly classified into alcoholic and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, whereby non-alcoholic fatty liver disease is steatosis secondary to causes such as steatogenic medication. Liver biopsy remains the gold standard for diagnosis of hepatic steatosis. However, it is invasive and may potentially suffer from sampling errors. Hepatic steatosis may be diagnosed on unenhanced CT if the hepatic attenuation is less than 40 HU, or if the attenuation of the liver is at least 10 HU less than the spleen. Over the past three decades, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease …

Association Of 24-32wk Maternal Triglyceride Levels And Neonatal Birth Weight At The Aga Khan University Hospital, Demetrius Mududa Omondi

Theses & Dissertations

Introduction: The association of neonatal birth weight and mid-term maternal lipid levels has been demonstrated in several studies with elevated serum triglyceride levels shown to be a strong predictor of the large for gestational age baby/ fetal macrosomia. Maternal diabetes remains the strongest risk factor for developing a LGA/macrosomic baby explained by the Pederson hypothesis. However non-diabetic macrosomia is still an obstetric dilemma with the attendant fetal and maternal complications. This phenomenon could be explained by altered maternal lipid metabolism as lipids have been shown to be important for normal fetal growth and development.

Objective: Our primary objective was to …

Sonographic Estimation Of The Prevalence Of Hepatic Steatosis In Hiv Monoinfected Patients At Aga Khan University Nairobi., Bernadette Wambui Muthee

Theses & Dissertations

Introduction: Human immunodeficiency virus disease (HIV) is a worldwide health problem. It is estimated that 38.6 million people are infected with HIV globally. It has remained endemic in the African continent for close to 20 years and is a long term developmental challenge in Africa which bears 69 % of the HIV/AIDS global burden.

The introduction of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) has caused dramatic improvement in prognosis of HIV disease. Consequently, this has resulted in substantial reduction in Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) related morbidity and mortality. In contrast, this has been accompanied by an upsurge in liver- related …

The Impact Of The Introduction Of The Pecarn Head Ct Rules On The Utilisation Of Head Ct Scans For Children With Mild Head Injury At The Aga Khan University Hospital, Nairobi., Isaac Oluoch Kobe

Theses & Dissertations

Background: Head injury is the most common cause of childhood morbidity and mortality worldwide. Mild head injury comprises 90% of cases of head injury in children. Head CT scans are few, expensive and have the side effect of ionizing radiation whose effect is potentiated in children and also associated risk of sedation that is often required when doing CT scans in young children. The decision to order CT scans of the head is thus made on the basis of clinical decision rules of which the PECARN CT head rule has been found to be most sensitive and useful.

Objectives: Primary: …

The Diagnostic Accuracy Of Determine™ Tb Lam Antigen In Detection Of Extra Pulmonary Tuberculosis (Eptb), Fatimah Osman Juma

Theses & Dissertations

Background: TB remains a key global health challenge; particularly Extra pulmonary Tuberculosis (EPTB) and is also a major cause of morbidity and mortality in sub-Saharan Africa. The increasing incidence of EPTB compounded by difficulties in making a timely diagnosis portends to poor prognosis and increased mortality. Delays in diagnosis and misdiagnosis of EPTB in suspected patients account for mortality as well. Challenges in diagnosis of EPTB are mainly due to disease related factors, the paucibacillary nature of disease and challenges with sample collection and processing. Reference standard test such as TB culture, geneXpert and histology which are used in the …

Association Between Immediate Postnatal Anaemia And Risk Of Developing Postpartum Depression At The Aga Khan University Hospital: A Cohort Study, John Ndungu Kimani

Theses & Dissertations

Introduction: Postpartum depression has significant burden on obstetric psychopathology. While risk factors for the same have been extensively studied, most of this studies have focused on the role of psychosocial factors. Data on the role of physiological variables such as anaemia and role of obstetric complications in postpartum depression is now emerging. There are still gaps in literature regarding the same in developing countries and in Africa.

Primary Objective: To determine the association between low postnatal hemoglobin and postpartum depression

Secondary Objective: To determine the association between obstetric complication specifically postpartum hemorrhage, operative delivery and NICU/NHDU admission and postpartum depression. …

Vitamin D Levels In Black African Adults At The Aga Khan University Hospital Nairobi, Elizabeth Muringa Kagotho

Theses & Dissertations

Introduction: Vitamin D has been known for centuries for its benefits in bone health. Recent observational studies have however demonstrated its benefits in infectious diseases such as tuberculosis and non-communicable diseases such as diabetes mellitus, cardiovascular diseases and cancer. This has led to a dramatic increase in testing among adults. The cut-offs for vitamin D deficiency have been debated for decades and the current cut off is derived from a Caucasian population. Studies done among black African adults in Africa are few and have shown that vitamin D deficiency ranges from 5-91%. In view of the difference in skin colour, …